


A Lapse of Mind

by Ruen



Category: Naruto
Genre: M/M, Nejilee
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-15
Updated: 2017-03-15
Packaged: 2018-10-05 14:54:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,411
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10310750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruen/pseuds/Ruen
Summary: When Lee couldn't sleep, he'd train instead. He had never had a partner during those late night sessions, though. It was a surprise when he suddenly found himself with one.





	

Lee's eyes slowly blinked open. When his sight finally focused and he was awake enough to be aware of his surroundings, he was surprised to find the room around him dark. Eyebrows furrowing slightly, he rolled to the side, blankets rustling around him. He then leaned up on his forearms to stretch to see out the window next to his bed. The sky was a deep blue, not quite black. It must be very early in the morning, then. Why was he awake, anyway? He woke up early, but not this early. Even he needed sleep to be fully rejuvenated and able to train to the best of his ability. But he could already tell that he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep. He was too awake by now, all grogginess having faded from his body. So he flopped onto his back with a sigh, bemoaning the loss of sleep, before a thought struck him. He jolted up in bed.

"Yosh! In my own youthful exuberance, I have subconsciously woken up early to give myself more time to train! I will take this grand opportunity that the universe has presented to me!" He leapt out of bed, covers flying, and threw on his jumpsuit. He then promptly sprinted out the door.

Lee arrived at the training complex in a flurry of motion, prepared to burst through the door in a proper youthful entrance, sparkles and all, but ground to a halt at the last second. A nagging voice in the back of his mind reminded him that it was, in fact, 2:00 AM. The sleeping shinobi in the village would most likely not appreciate a loud crash in the middle of the night. He was also aware of the fact that he could very well be killed, mistaken as an enemy, by a sleep addled ninja. He vowed to himself that, if he failed to keep respectfully quiet, he would run five-hundred laps around Konoha. On his hands. He nodded to himself, determined, then slowly opened the door and made sure to not let it slam into anything. His efforts were rewarded with complete silence. He mentally congratulated himself, a grin spreading across his face, before he composed himself and tread down the dark hallway on silent feet.

He headed to one of the large, open training halls, wanting enough space to practice some of his new taijutsu techniques. The rooms were also sound proofed due to the often loud nature of training shinobi. Therefore, he wouldn't bother anyone with his training! Good. He didn't want to be on anyone's bad side, especially considering who the residents of Konoha were. The wrath of an annoyed shinobi was never pleasant. Sadly, it seemed he managed to get on people's nerves anyway. Specifically, Hyuuga Neji. His teammate seemed to develop a twitch in his eye whenever Lee was nearby. Lee wanted to be liked and accepted, or at least just acknowledged, by his teammate. They were around each other often, after all. It would be nice if Neji talked to him once in awhile instead of only speaking to him to point out another thing Lee had done wrong. Maybe he really should tone down his youthful exuberance. Shoulders slumped, he paused in front of the door that led to the training hall and regarded it dejectedly. Was his energy and youthful excitement really that grating? He clenched his fists, eyebrows furrowing. No. He would not change himself to please others. He was proud of who he was! He was Konoha's one and only beautiful Azure Beast! He had trained hard every day of his life to become who he was today, and he would let no one dim his shining spirit! Properly reassured, he opened the door with the spring back in his step.

Unexpectedly, the lights were on. Thankfully dimmed, otherwise he would have been blinded for a second by the abrupt transition from dark to light. He mentally sent his gratitude to whoever had been thoughtful enough to take this into account. But…why were the lights on? Had someone forgotten to turn them off? Looking down over the railing to the wooden floor below, Lee saw no one. Huh. He shrugged, then went down the stairs.

Lee loved training in the early morning, especially in the training hall. It was strangely calming, being in such a large, empty space. It felt as if the rest of the world had faded to the background, taking with it all his worries and troubles. He could focus solely on his training, no sounds or movements besides the ones he made himself to distract him. He could let go of his surroundings and become immersed in the feeling of his body moving, acutely aware of every twitch in his muscles. He thought of nothing. It was as if his body moved by itself. Eventually he stilled, having completed the exercises he planned to do, muscles pleasantly warmed up and limber. He realized that his eyes were closed, not aware of when he had closed them, and opened them slowly. He then let out an undignified shriek, arms and legs flailing as he recoiled, heart jumping in his chest. Hyuuga Neji stood a few feet away from him, arms crossed and eyebrow slightly raised.

"Y-you!" Lee raised an accusing finger to point at Neji, while his other hand clutched at the fabric over his rapidly beating heart.

Neji just looked at him, expression flat. "Me."

Lee's mouth opened and closed uselessly for a moment, before he managed to blurt out, "When did you even get here?!"

"Before you."

"But...but there was no one here when I came in!" Lee managed to straighten from his cowering position, indignant.

"I left for a moment to turn on the lights."

Oh. That answered who had turned the lights on. Wait. Oh no. He'd taken Neji's training room, hadn't he? Lee wanted to smack himself in the face. The lights were on! Someone was obviously using the room! Now Neji would be furious and think Lee was even more stupid than he had previously thought.

Lee abruptly bent at the waist, bowing in front of Neji, hands pressed together in front of his chest. "Neji! Please accept my most sincere apologies for being so inconsiderate and taking your training room! I will leave immediately!" Lee moved to go, but paused when Neji held up a hand. Lee stared at Neji apprehensively, unable to read his expressionless face.

"Stay." Lee stood where he was, mid step, utterly confused. Had he heard wrong? Neji hated him. Why would he want Lee to stay?

"I need a sparring partner." Ah. Despite how much Neji disliked him, training _did_ always come first. Neji was dedicated, at least. Lee could appreciate that. Unable to come up with a response, Lee just nodded. Neji then walked past him to the middle of the room and stood waiting. Lee didn't move. He was still trying to figure out if this was actually happening. Neji had asked him to spar? Neji?!

The sound of a throat being cleared caused him to look away from where he had been staring into the middle distance. Neji had crossed his arms again and raised an expectant eyebrow. Oh. Oh! Lee was supposed to be standing opposite him so they could spar! Lee could feel a blush start to heat up his cheeks. He was making an even bigger fool of himself than he usually did. He rushed to stand in position, berating himself mentally. Come on, Lee! This is an important opportunity for you to get stronger! You've been trying to convince Neji to spar with you for months and, now that you finally have the opportunity, you're going to waste it and make Neji change his mind? No! Compose yourself!

Lee took a deep breath and managed to calm his thoughts. "Neji. What do you plan to work on?"

"Taijutsu." It went unsaid that that was the only thing Lee could do.

Lee had to make sure, though. "No ninjutsu?"

"None." Okay. He could work with that. It wouldn't be a full on battle due to Neji not using his Byakugan and skills in ninjutsu, but Lee could test his taijutsu skills against Neji, who was skilled in taijutsu as well. Lee would show Neji that all his hard work had made him stronger. That natural talent was not needed for one to succeed. Now was his moment to prove himself! He would not fail!

Lee locked eyes with Neji. "Ready?"

Neji settled into his fighting stance. "Start."

Lee leapt forward, adrenaline coursing through his veins. They met in the middle, clashing together, Neji's forearm blocking Lee's kick. The impact jarred his leg, sending a wave of vibration through him. Neji was strong. Lee grinned. This spar was going to be even better than he had expected. Lee flipped in the air, avoiding Neji's fist, and landed steadily. They exchanged blows almost too quickly for the eye to see, bodies moving in intricate patterns as they fought to find an opening in the other's defenses. Lee began to breathe harder, sweat forming on his brow. Each blow Neji sent him was powerful and deliberate, no movement wasted. Lee's muscles strained to hold off Neji's attacks, making sure none reached their mark. Lee admitted to himself that he was impressed. But when had he ever _not_ been impressed by the Hyuuga prodigy? Neji was considered a genius, and rightfully so. Lee had never faced another person who fought quite like Neji did. He moved so differently from Lee. Anytime Lee watched Neji fight, his eyes were drawn to Neji’s movements. He was steady. So solid, sure in his actions, not giving an inch when blocking a blow. He was focused and calm, almost cold in the way he fought so precisely. Every ounce of concentration was used, eyes intense. When put under that unyielding gaze, Lee felt as if Neji were seeing into him, through him, and knew every move he would make, every thought that flitted through his mind. And yet Neji moved with such grace, flowing like water through his movements. Lee was baffled by this. How could Neji be so solid and yet move with such fluidity? He wasn't sure if he would ever know.

A particularly close call, Neji's foot almost connecting with the side of his head, dragged him from his thoughts. Out of the corner of his eye, the wall came into view. When had it gotten so close? Maybe he could use it to his advantage. A shinobi must always be aware of his surroundings, after all. He might be able to corner Neji against the wall. It would be difficult, though. Neji was not one to be caught unawares by his surroundings. Lee had to distract him somehow. Make him so focused on holding off Lee that he wouldn't have time to focus on anything else, such as avoiding the wall. Lee was never one to hold back, anyway.

He increased the speed of his blows, putting more power behind them. He heard a grunt as his leg connected with Neji's arms. That made him proud, a small thrill of triumph quirking his mouth. If anything, being able to get such a small reaction out of the Hyuuga was an accomplishment. Neji was having to work to hold him off. Lee felt a spark of heat ignite in his chest, fueling his efforts further. He blocked a particularly well-aimed punch, having to contort a little strangely, and their eyes happened to meet. Lee's breath hitched in his throat, a spike of an unknown feeling jolting through his chest. Neji...Neji looked...There was something in his eyes that made Lee feel hunted. There was such intensity in his gaze, his face no longer impassive, something raw in his expression. Lee had never seen anyone look at him like that before. And then their gazes were broken apart as another flurry of blows passed between them.

An unknown feeling began to well up inside Lee. It started in his chest, making it feel near to bursting, then slowly spread throughout the rest of his body, adding fire to his limbs. He was breathing hard, now, ragged breaths struggling to bring enough oxygen into his body. He felt...he felt almost out of control. Like there was a raging inferno burning inside his body, threatening to consume him. He was almost scared. The feeling was so _intense_ and he had never felt this way before, he had no idea what it was, what was going on, why did he feel like he was going to combust, why was he so _heated_ , this was--his fist connected with the wall. The concrete shattered beneath his hand, cracks fissuring out like a ripple in water. And suddenly he slammed back into himself, that frightening feeling dispersing, his mind clearing.

He found himself face to face with Neji. Neji had diverted his blow, causing it to just barely miss his face and instead slam into the wall to the right of his head. Lee's fist was centimeters away from having brained Neji. Neji, who was pinned against the wall, breathing hard and fast, fingers wrapped around the wrist of the arm that Lee still had embedded in the wall. Lee stared, wide eyed, at what he had done. And then made the mistake of looking at Neji's face. A cold spike of fear drove itself through his heart. Neji looking positively livid would have made sense, was expected, but…Neji was staring at him with wide eyes, face almost blank, yet some unknown emotion lingered in the furrow of his eyebrows, the tilt of his mouth, the depths of his eyes.

Lee was completely and utterly terrified.

He tried to jerk away, back up, flee the room, _anything_ , but fingers tightened around his wrist in an iron grip. He stared at the hand that had just made escape impossible and ensured his fate of a slow and horrible death. Distantly, he realized that he had never had the opportunity to study Neji's hand up close. It was pale, but neither dainty nor smooth. It was a shinobi's hand. Powerful and calloused from years of use, injury, and training. But it was not a rough hand, either. It was not large, or veiny, or unpleasant to look at. Neji had nice hands. Too bad they were about to kill him. Or torture him. Or possibly rip him apart limb from limb. Wait, that probably still counted as torture. Then maybe Neji would--His brain promptly short-circuited. There was a warm pressure covering his mouth. What--What was Neji--? Lee jerked back reflexively, but Neji had already pulled away. All Lee could do was stare, mouth open, speech having abandoned him. Had Neji just…kissed him? Neji gazed back at him, face as blank as ever, and Lee decided that, no, Neji had most definitely _not_ just kissed him. He must have imagined it, because Neji hated him and was about to kill him, and Neji would never, ever, even _consider_ kissing him. Loud, overzealous, bushy-browed Lee, who couldn't even use ninjutsu and would never be viewed as anything but a nuisance and incompetent fool by Neji. There was a flicker of movement, and Lee braced himself for whatever horror awaited him. But Neji's head turned to the right. His fingers loosened around Lee's wrist, gently tilting Lee's arm so that the underside was turned towards him. And then a ghost of breath warmed Lee's skin before a pair of lips brushed the sensitive underside of his wrist. Lee couldn't breathe. Neji's mouth lingered, and his pale eyes rose to meet Lee's. He then gently pressed another kiss to the underside of Lee's forearm, eyes still raised, looking directly into Lee's own. A gasp tried to escape Lee's lungs as shivers ran up his arm from where Neji's mouth was grazing his skin. Then Neji's mouth was gone.

Lee had the distinct feeling of falling from a very high place. Of course. He _knew_ it. Neji had only had a momentary lapse of judgement, or maybe was suffering from a concussion. Actually, it was more likely that he himself had been socked in the head, because he had just hallucinated that Neji--Neji of all people!--had gently kissed his wrist. But then a warm, solid body pressed close to him, and the heat of a mouth moved against his own. Lee couldn't hold in the gasp that tried to leave him this time. The small noise escaped him and was muffled by Neji's mouth. Neji's mouth. That was covering his. Neji's breath that was brushing over his face. Neji's lips that were soft and warm and slightly chapped, moving against his. And suddenly that feeling was back, burning through him in an instant, and a desperate noise escaped from between his lips as he surged forward. He pressed up against Neji's body, pushing him against the wall, and buried his fingers in Neji's soft, soft hair. Neji groaned, then, his mouth open against Lee's, and Lee could feel the noise vibrate against his chest and in his mouth. That one undone noise sent a hot surge of want coursing through his entire body. Lee pressed a knee between Neji's legs, pinning him further, pressing him even closer against his body. Neji arched slightly against him, entire body flush with Lee’s own, before tangling his fingers in Lee's hair and tugging. Hard. Lee jerked, the pain coursing through him in a heady rush, and moaned as Neji's tongue ran across the seam of his lips. Neji took the opportunity to slide their tongues together, breath hot and wet between them, before taking Lee's bottom lip between his teeth. Lee could only gasp brokenly as he pressed forward. His knee rose unintentionally, and suddenly Neji was bucking against him, head thrown back against the wall as he moaned. The pale expanse of Neji's neck and the underside of his jaw were exposed to Lee, who immediately ran his tongue up the tendon at the side of Neji’s neck, lingering at his adam's apple, before he tongued beneath Neji's ear. His breath ghosted over the sensitive, fragile skin there, and Neji shivered against him, fingers clenching in his hair. He then lightly ran his teeth down Neji's jugular, and the noise that escaped Neji's throat drove all coherent thought from Lee's mind. He couldn't control the way his hips rolled up against Neji's as he mouthed wetly at the underside of his jaw. Neji pressed back against Lee's knee, and suddenly they were moving against each other, hips pressed together, kissing hungrily, desperately. Lee distantly noted the fact that he was hard. Then that realization slammed into him. He was hard. He was _hard_ , and he was rutting against Neji. Hyuuga Neji. Cold, composed, unfeeling Neji. Neji, who was currently moaning into his mouth as Lee did unspeakable things with his tongue. Lee froze, horrified. What was he _doing?!_ He tore himself away, the warmth of Neji's hand falling from his hair. He scrambled backwards, distraught, and stared at what he had done.

Neji was still pressed against the wall, chest rising and falling rapidly as he tried to catch his breath. He stared back at Lee, cheeks flushed, lips swollen, hair disheveled. Completely undone. Lee had done that. Oh, Kami help him, _he_ had done that. He wanted to cry.

He stumbled back further, the sound of Neji moaning into his neck replaying over and over again in his mind. No. No, no, no! What had he done, how could he have done this, _what had he done to Neji?!_ His hands rose to clutch at his hair, staring at his feet as his breathing quickened and tears threatened to fall as they welled up in his eyes. How could he have done this to Neji? Neji, who hated him? His eyes rose, and he saw Neji pushing away from the wall. Lee panicked. Then bolted.

At least, he tried to. But his wrist was grabbed, yet again, and yanked on painfully as he tried to pull away. Another hand roughly grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.

"Where do you think you're going?" Neji snarled as an alarmingly contorted expression crossed his face.

"I--I'm so sorry, Neji. Oh, Kami, I'm _so sorry._ I don't know what came over me! It will never happen again, I promise! I know you don't like me, I don't know why I did that, why I thought I should do that, I mean--you hate me, why would I ever think that was something I could do?" Lee grabbed at his hair with his free hand again, berating himself. "You hate me, _you hate me_ , why did I--"

Lee's chin was yanked up, forcing him to look away from the ground and into Neji's eyes. Neji looked absolutely livid. Lee had predicted that would happen, hadn’t he. Apparently, his prediction had come true. He tried to avert his gaze, unable to look Neji in the eye after what he had done to him. Neji's fingers tightened almost painfully on his chin.

"Look at me." Lee couldn't, he _couldn't_ \--"Look at me, Lee!" Lee's eyes shot up. He had never heard Neji speak in that tone of voice before. In fact, he had never seen Neji raise his voice, or lose his temper, ever. Neji was always so composed, always coldly indifferent, oftentimes arrogantly so. Neji was none of those things right now. Neji looked…wrecked. Completely and utterly wrecked. His eyes were wild, something desperate residing in them. His mouth was twisted into a grimace, eyebrows drawn together tightly.

He yanked Lee closer, glaring at him fiercely, before suddenly he just looked…lost. Neji closed his eyes, letting out a harsh breath through his nose, mouth a thin line. When he spoke, his voice was lowered again, but in no way was it calm. It was deadly and, quite frankly, _terrifying._

"When I walked into this room, and saw you training here, I--" He paused, letting out a rough breath, grip tightening threateningly in the fabric of Lee's jumpsuit. "The look on your face, Lee. You're eyes were closed and-- _gods_ , when you move like that, I--" Neji let out a frustrated growl, sending shivers running down Lee’s spine. "The things I want to do to you--"

"But--But you hate me!"

Neji moved forward in a flurry of movement, a snarl falling from his mouth, and yanked the arm that was still in his grip. Lee gasped as he found himself pulled against Neji's body, his arm contained in an unyielding grip. Then his eyes widened, almost comically so, and he looked down between their bodies to find his hand firmly pressed against Neji's hardened length, hot through the fabric of his pants. Lee whimpered, and Neji pressed Lee's hand down harder.

"Do you feel that?" Neji's breath was too hot against his cheek, their foreheads almost touching. "If I hated you, do you really think you could do this to me? That I would let you?"

Lee shook his head almost imperceptibly, a broken "No." falling from his lips.

Neji let go of Lee's wrist, then, and raised his hand to cup Lee's cheek, thumb trailing over the fragile skin under his eye in a surprisingly gentle gesture. Lee didn't know that Neji could be so... _gentle_. At least, he hadn't seen him be. His mind supplied him with the imagine of Neji's lips brushing his wrist, eyes locked with his own, and Lee realized that maybe he _had_ seen Neji be gentle before. Lee gained the courage to look up from where his eyes had stayed rooted to the floor, and met Neji's gaze. The face before him had softened, losing the hard lines of frustration and the fierceness of anger. But Neji's expression remained serious, eyes intense.

"I don't hate you, Lee."

Neji…didn't hate him. It took Lee a few seconds for that to sink in. He then flushed a brilliant shade of red. He had kissed Neji. Thoroughly. Oh, Kami, he had pressed Neji against a wall and kissed him and Neji had _moaned_ , his dark hair falling into his face and--Oh. It suddenly occurred to him that Neji had kissed him first. Neji...Neji really didn't hate him. Neji, who was always annoyed when Lee was around, who glared at him constantly…who Lee now realized had just been incredibly frustrated from being around someone whom he thought he could never have. Neji had said…Lee's stomach dropped and he turned an even darker shade of red at the memory, his flushed cheeks burning. Neji had said that when he watched Lee train, it made him…Lee's mind chose that moment to display an image of Neji's hand wrapped around his wrist, pressing Lee's hand against his hard, hot--No no no, don't go there brain! He frantically tried to think of something else, anything else--

"Lee." Neji's voice broke him out of his own self induced mental spiral of doom, and his eyes refocused on the pale ones before him. Neji studied Lee's face for a long moment, eyes roving over his features, before something hard in his eyes faded away and the harsh line of his mouth softened. Lee suddenly became acutely aware of the fact that their faces were only inches apart, Neji's palm soft against his cheek, his intent gaze focused solely on Lee. And then Neji titled his head forward, causing Lee's breath to hitch as he pressed a soft, chaste kiss to the corner of Lee’s mouth, then pulled away. Neji's hands fell away from him, and Lee mourned the loss of contact, his skin cold where Neji's hands had rested. But then the cold faded away, because Neji--Hyuuga Neji--was smiling at him. It was just the softest quirk of his mouth, a gentle tug at the corner of his lips, but it filled Lee's chest with a fond warmth that threatened to overflow. He would not cry. He would not cry! He refused to ruin this perfect moment!

"I'll see you tomorrow, Lee."

Lee sniffled. Just a little bit. "See you, Neji." And as Neji walked out of the training hall, Lee couldn't suppress the sparkling grin that overtook his face.


End file.
